The present invention is directed to the field of pallets for storing/transporting goods. More particularly, the present invention is directed to a plastic pallet with snap together components.
Pallets are typically formed of wood. The components, the stringers and the slats, are held together by nails. These pallets afford a number of problems for handlers. First, the wood has limited strength and is subject to breaking. Even if the boards remain intact, they can create splinters. Further, where pallets are used to store food goods, cleanliness is important. However, wood does not wash off well and the exposure of the nails to water produces rust, eventually leading to the pallets coming apart. Splinters, broken jagged slats, unstable pallets, and rusty nails all contribute to a hazardous work zone for those responsible for manipulating the pallets and their stored goods. Further, the residual food particles trapped in the interstices of the wood, form breeding grounds for health problems, attract rats and, if nothing else, produce a stench as the food rots.
As a result, attempts have been made to make plastic pallets. Plastic is a durable material that washes easily and can, if formed properly, provide the necessary strength needed in pallet performance. The components of the plastic pallet of the present invention have been engineered to fasten together quickly and easily and to stay together permanently.
The plastic pallet of the present invention comprises a first plurality of stringers having a first maximum height, a first maximum width, and first length extending parallel to each other in a first direction, each of the plurality of stringers having a flat uppermost surface, and a flat lowermost surface. The flat uppermost surface has a central region which extends to the first maximum height over an entirety of the first length. The stringer has a second plurality of attachment regions each for receiving a slat. The pallet includes a third plurality of slats, the third plurality being equal to the second plurality of attachment regions, each slat having a first plurality of dovetail slots for receiving and locking to the attachment regions the first plurality of stringers.
Various other features, advantages and characteristics of the present invention will become apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art after a reading of the following specification.